Paws & Reflect by Maui Humane Society

August 3, 2011 - Mark Vieth

The Maui Humane Society maintains an open-door policy, accepting all homeless pets at our shelter. But with thousands of animals coming through our doors every year, we can only do so much. Too many animals. Not enough homes. We keep healthy, tame animals as long as possible—sometimes for several months— in hopes of adoption. But when there is simply no more space, some animals are euthanized to make room for others. We are criticized for this, but in truth MHS is not the enemy. Those to blame for this sad situation are the people who let their unneutered cats roam the neighborhood, abandon their unwanted pets to wander the island, or let their pets breed, multiplying Maui’s homeless pet population.

There are several agencies on Maui, in addition to MHS, working to humanely address these issues. Some focus on short-term solutions such as providing shelter or finding homes for unwanted pets; others focus on long-term solutions such as spay/neuter and humane education. We have great respect for any agency that is working on behalf of Maui’s animals, and we believe the greatest good can be accomplished if we all respectfully work together. There is no reason to point fingers or lay blame between agencies. All of us are doing the best we can with limited resources, and the reality is no single agency has the facilities, staffing, or funding to neuter or permanently shelter every homeless animal on this island. Thus, MHS welcomes partnerships with other animal groups on Maui to achieve common goals and save more lives.

Support MHS. Support Maui’s other animal agencies. But remember that ultimately the solution depends upon every member of our community acting responsibly toward animals. Please do your part.